439
people found this helpful, as of 2023
ranked #45,336 most helpful
out of 571,544,897 reviews
★★★★☆
Excellent remote.
Got this remote from Crutchfield last Friday. Not only does it work great, but the remote and the hub both look good and the build is high quality. When I opened the box, I was hoping it would work as good as it looks, and it didn't let me down. You can set up either using a PC, or with the iphone or Android app, which I have an iphone. Strongly recommend using the app because you can plug the hub in, and leave it there. One thing with set up: if you are upgrading from another Harmony remote, chances are you can import the activities, and that speeds it up. Only thing it won't import are customized button settings, but that's no problem. The feel of the remote is great, and the buttons "click" so you know the command has been sent. And you may not need to use the mini-blaster if your hub is in the open, I'm just using the hub and the remote. And note that the hub is required because that's what actually sends the IR commands to your equipment. One neat thing: when you update your settings and sync via the app, the hub updates over wifi and then it updates your remote via RF. For those wondering about the remote battery, it's a replaceable CR2032 coin battery that's supposed to last one year or longer, but we'll see. And this battery also explains why the buttons aren't backlit (too much drain).
One weak point is the documentation, which there was practically none. Also, seems like Logitech tech support hasn't been well trained on this device. One of their techs happened to change a setting on my account, and that caused the remote to stop working. The next day I asked how to reset to factory condition so I could redo the set up, and they told me to press and release the reset/pair button, which is incorrect (that's only to pair a remote). Finally, they told me to unplug it, then press and hold the button, plug it back in, and wait until the LED turned solid red before releasing. WHY this is not in the documentation, I don't know. With better documentation and tech support training, I would have rated 5 stars.
UPDATE 6/13 - First off, I don't know why my review was dated May 20 by Amazon, I actually reviewed it 6/11. Anyway, a note about the "Help" feature: First, the remote doesn't have a help button (no display to guide you through the motions), it's only found on the iphone app (or android). But even in the app, the help feature is only present when an activity is "on". When all activities are off, there is no help feature present. This means if you turn off the TV activity, but your cable or satellite box fails to turn off (if you've set everything to turn off), the only way to do it is either at the device or by using the device's original remote. I called tech support and they verified it wasn't there by looking at one of their ipads. They said they would "elevate" it. Now I'll just wait and see if that gets done. After all, it is a core feature that should be there.
UPDATE 7/6 - I actually emailed the CEO of Logitech about the "Help" issue with the iphone app (it's there when you turn on an activity in case a device failed to turn on, but not there when turning off activities, so what do you do if a device doesn't turn off ?), and a rep from corporate did answer. He stated that they are planning on updating the app to include this feature in late summer as part of their "road map". I still don't understand why this wasn't programmed in from the beginning since "Help" is a core feature of their remotes. I guess they must contract out their software programming and they simply left it out and Logitech didn't check/test for it, or they did test the software but overlooked "Help". Whatever the reason, I'm satisfied I got a proper response. Now we'll see if it actually gets done. Still love the remote, though. And the coin battery still appears to be going strong after four weeks of use (don't hardly use the iphone app, but when I do, I want the "Help" to be there like it should).
UPDATE 7/28 - Logitech has now updated their app to include the "Help" function when turning off an activity, this was previously missing. Only thing is it appears that the associated firmware update for the hub was probably delayed because I initially had problems with the updated app. However, I tried the app again last night and noticed the firmware update came through, so now the app works like it should. Also, the corporate rep followed up with me and stated that they have made improvements to the documentation included in the box, although it may be a bit before the updated packaging gets to the customer. And the original battery still seems to be going strong after almost 8 weeks of almost exclusively using the simple remote.
May 2013 · Electronics